Sunday, August 24, 2014

Has it happened to you? You've
repeatedly fallen in love while reading the wonderful romance novels by your
favorite author.Without warning, she
decides to switch from western romance to...gasp...contemporary romantic suspense.

My world hasn't been the same since.

Another favorite romance author switched
to suspense, and in the process actually denied ever having written a romance
novel.

Notice I am not using names, but these
are real authors.

However, now that I am on the writing
side of the aisle, I understand the desire to write something different.

As of now, I do write western romance
and contemporary romance which is much more like women's fiction.

Note One: My internet sales have always
leaned heavily toward western romance. This category is how I make my money.
(Notice I did not say "fortune.")

Note Two: I have written a few
contemporary romances/women's fiction which are not big internet sellers, but the prints were well received here at home.

My fan base here in town is a wonderful
faithful group, and they will read anything I write.

If I publish a Western Historical
Romance, they'll buy it and make very nice comments, and ask when will I have
the next book available.

If I publish a Contemporary
Romance/Women's Fiction, they'll buy it, too, and still give me compliments and
ask the same question.

Now, here's the interesting part.

Recently, I took a poll from my reader
friends.

"Do you prefer Western Historical
Romance, or do you prefer Contemporary Romance which is closer to Women's
Fiction than pure romance?"

More replied they liked the
contemporary/women's fiction for a particular reason.

Want to know what that reason ? They
feel as though they're reading about "real people."

And they like that.

So do I. I've enjoyed writing all the
western romances, long and short, but after a while I almost feel as though I'm
writing "by the book," or "by a specified outline."

Although these always have love stories,
they are not the focus of the story.

Am I making sense?

Here is one example:

Making the Turn: 39 year old Sara
Daniels loses her luxurious lifestyle in Dallas overnight. To survive, she must
go home to Del Rey, Texas and move in with her mother in the old farm house
where she was born and grew up.

Sara is the main character and how she
will redefine herself.

Her mother, Dorothy, is cantankerous and
argumentative which confuses Sara.

Her college-age daughter, Laney, moves
in for part of the summer because her mother no longer has the big house in
Dallas where Laney grew up.

The story revolves around Sara and her
relationship with her mother, her daughter, and the handsome physicist who is
occupying a nearby farm house with his motherless young boy.

(I have the rights back to this novel
and it has been filed in my computer over a year. I will re-write a little and
rename it "Return to Del Rey."

The novels I've loved to write are my
"Texas" romance books:

Texas Blue

Texas Promise

Texas True

Texas Dreamer

A little danger, some adventure, and of
course, a romance. These somewhat follow characters from two families who
helped settle Texas.

As difficult as it is to say, I've
decided these four novels will be all of the "Texas" books.

Time to begin something new.

But what? Time will tell. So far, I've
been fortunate that an idea appeared in some fashion that led me on to my
next story.